1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods and apparatus that may be used with games of chance and skill, specifically to card games which are particularly suitable for use in casinos or private clubs and which can be played either as a hybrid live casino/video game, computer-based internet game, video or virtual table game, or video game. In particular, the invention relates to an apparatus and method that may be used with a card game in which a wild card or a community card is provided in the play of the game.
2. Background of the Art
Wagering games played in casino establishments have achieved a very high level of public acceptance. Particularly in the United States, there are now thousands of casinos in many different locations, and in certain jurisdictions, private businesses may have video gaming equipment. The rise in gaming has been in large part because of the entertainment value of gaming, the variety of games available to provide interest to the player beyond the gaming aspects of play itself, and greater acceptance of gaming by the public. It is generally recognized that successful games should: (1) be entertaining for the players, (2) attract the attention of and visual interest of players, (3) stimulate rapid numbers of wagers during predetermined time periods; (4) provide reasonable and understandable odds to the player; (5) provide unvarying overall odds in favor of the casino; (6) be sufficiently simple to allow rapid acceptance of the game with a short learning curve, and (7) be easily monitored by observers and any dealer to avoid errors and cheating. Both casino table games and video games have achieved high levels of success with these parameters kept in mind during their design.
There are a wide variety of card games, particularly poker games available to players in private games, club games, casino table games and on video gaming equipment. In casino video gaming equipment, the easiest format to work with comprises variants of five-card draw poker. This game is played in a video gaming format with many variations, for example, by having five cards dealt to a player. The player selects his best cards (e.g., the cards most likely to provide a highly ranked hand when the player discards and draws replacement cards), discards unneeded cards, and then draws replacement cards. The objective in these video games is generally to achieve the best possible hand, according to conventional poker hand rankings, with hands of various ranks being awarded payouts that are multiples (usually with limits from about 1:1 to about 4000:1) of the wager. The game has such a readily appreciated ease of understanding and play that the format has been highly successful. Common variants of this game include games where deuces within the playing deck are wild, jokers added to the playing deck are wild, multiple mixed decks are used for the dealing of hands, extra bonuses are provided for unique hands, and the like. These variations in the rules are still readily understood and add variety to the basic pure game of five card draw.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,743,022 to Michael Wood, 1988, discloses a poker game which can be played on a computer video output screen gaming machine or as a table game. At the start of the game, the player makes a first wager and receives five cards, which constitutes a first hand. As is known to those skilled in the art, five-card poker hands are ranked, for competitive purposes, according to the following order from lowest to highest: (1) High Card in Hand; (2) One Pair; (3) Two Pair; (4) Three of a Kind; (5) Straight; (6) Flush; (7) Full House; (8) Four of a Kind; (9) Straight Flush; (10) Royal Flush; (11) Five of a Kind (which is possible only if a joker is used). Then each player may discard up to five cards and receive five new cards to form a second hand. The player loses the first wager if the second hand (or the first hand when no cards are discarded) does not have a pair. The player receives the wager back if the hand has a pair. The player receives a payout which exceeds the first wager in accordance with the posted odds if the hand is of higher order than a pair. The player is also entitled to make a second wager and to receive a sixth card. A five-card third hand having the highest possible ranking is then formed by combining the newly dealt card and any four of the five cards in the second hand. If the third hand is ranked lower than a straight and is of lower order than the second hand, the player loses the second wager. However, if the third hand has a ranking of a straight or greater and is of higher order than the second hand, the player wins an amount which depends on the second wager and the posted odds.
Although the Wood""s game allows the player an additional possibility of winning by providing the sixth card, the payout odds must be diminished proportionally, thus decreasing the generated level of excitement. Moreover, the thrill of the game is also reduced because the sixth card rarely produces a dramatic improvement in the ranking of the player""s hand. Furthermore, the rules of the game are fairly complex, involving three different hands and sometimes enigmatic criteria for receiving the sixth card (the video-game version). Several wild-card versions of Wood""s game have been suitable for casinos. In these, a wild card may possess any value specified by the player. For example, when deuces are wild, they can be counted as kings, aces, or have any other value and can fill in straights or flushes. Other variations of the game exist, for instance with jokers or eights wild. However, when wild cards are used, the game lacks the exciting element of surprise since the wild cards are declared to the player at the start of the game. Moreover, the game is rendered less attractive because the player always retains the wild cards and hence a lower pay table must be utilized. Thus, the player normally wins only when his or her hand ranking is three of a kind or higher.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,308,065 describes a poker game comprising a player making a wager and then being dealt a hand of five cards in a specific card location, with the cards being viewed by the player (e.g., face-up). The player is also dealt a single card from the same deck, this card being dealt face-down. The player may attempt to improve the five card hand by utilizing standard five card draw steps. After the player has acted on the five card hand, the sixth card is turned face-up, and all the cards in the player""s hand which have the same face value as the turned card are designated as a wild card.
The method of playing the game of chance in U.S. Pat. No. 5,308,065 is described as utilizing a maximum set with a finite plurality of scorable units, each having a fixed value, wherein the scorable units can be assembled, according to predetermined rules, into small sets having different rankings, said method comprising the steps of:
a player placing a wager; the player receiving an original set of A scorable units randomly chosen from the finite plurality of scorable units, where A is an integer, the original set having a ranking known to the player, thereby reducing the maximum set by the number of scorable units in said original sets. The player receives a solitary scorable unit randomly chosen from the finite plurality of scorable units remaining, the solitary scorable unit having a value concealed from the player, thereby reducing the maximum set by one additional unit. The player has a chance to improve the ranking of the original set by discarding up to A scorable units from the original set and replacing them with an equal number of scorable units randomly chosen from the remaining finite plurality of scorable units, thus forming a modified original set. The value of the solitary scorable unit is revealed to said player. All scorable units of the modified original set which have the same value as the solitary scorable unit are assigned replacement arbitrary values which maximally improve the ranking of the modified original set. The modified original set is evaluated in accordance with predefined criteria to determine whether the player has won or lost the wager. Thus the play of the game provides a wild card from within the set of symbols used in the play of the game.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,818 describes a multideck poker game that is able to provide unique hands without the use of wild cards. A first hand is dealt from a first deck of cards. The player may select an additional card or cards to be dealt into his playing hand from an additional deck of cards. The player may discard cards , with replacement cards coming from the original decks from which the discards were dealt. In this manner, a hand of six or more cards may be created that has the possibility of poker hands unavailable from a single deck (e.g., a seven card royal flush).
U.S. Pat. No. 5,356,140 describes a video format gaming apparatus where a player makes a wager to participate in the game and the player is dealt two distinct hands at the beginning of the game. Each hand is dealt from its own separate complete deck of cards. The player selects one of the hands to play and the unselected hand is voided or removed from use. The player plays out the selected hand according to the conventional manner of play of the hand.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,809 describes a method of playing a card game wherein multiple decks of playing cards are used in a unique format which results in hands being possible that were not previously available. In the play of the game, such as five card draw poker, each card position in a player""s hand is dealt from a distinct deck. This enables the possibility of unique hands such as five aces of spades, without the need for using wild cards. In addition to the use of standard decks of cards, this method contemplates the use of decks which have been modified slightly, such as by the addition of two jokers to each deck. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,992 enables the possibility of unique types of hands by shuffling, for example, the same number of decks together as there are cards in a player""s hand (e.g., five decks would be shuffled together where the game is five card stud). This allows similar types of hands as U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,809.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,019,973 describes a method of playing poker in which after a primary game (e.g., five card stud) is played on a video gaming machine, a second wager may be placed to enter into an additional game. In this additional game, another card is dealt from the same deck of cards, and this another card is compared to the cards in the original and final hand. If the another card matches the value of one or more cards in the original final hand, all of the matched cards are changed in value to a wild card, and the hand is re-evaluated for the purpose of determining awards. The second wager is made on an additional poker game, based upon the cards used in the original poker game.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,275,411 describes an automatic card shuffling machine including a dealing module and a display module. The machine has a microprocessor and a deck-receiving shuffling station into which a deck of cards is deposited initially. A carriage mechanism separates the deck into two deck portions, rotates the two portions to a relative angular relationship with a corner of each in close proximity, riffles the portions, and combines them into a single shuffled deck. A shuffled deck delivery system delivers the shuffled deck to the dealing module which moves a predetermined number of cards, one at a time, into a hand holding shoe. The display module displays game information to players. The machine is particularly well-suited for playing pai gow poker.
Games have been played throughout history in which symbols are assigned to players, with symbols of particular rank or relationship determining relative value or strength of a player""s position within play of the game. Such games include games of chance including the use of instrumentalities such as dice, tiles, cards, spinning wheels and reels (as in slot machines). The advent of computers and associated monitors and their use within the gaming industry has provided essentially unlimited potential for the expansion of games into different instrumentalities as well as providing the older, traditional instrumentalities in a different format. For example, many of the games of chance played with physical instrumentalities are now played in video format, such games including Mah Jong, blackjack, craps, virtual reel slots, dominoes, poker, and games invented specifically for play on video screens.
Many versions of video draw poker have been around for years. Essentially, all electronic versions are played as follows, with minor variations: Five cards are dealt face-up to the player, the cards typically being randomly drawn from a single deck of fifty-two cards. The player selects which cards he or she likes, and discards the rest. To help in executing this selection, there are five xe2x80x9chold/cancelxe2x80x9d buttons, one associated with each card position. The player selects a card to keep by pressing the hold/cancel button. If for some reason the player wants to change the card selection, he or she presses the hold/cancel button again. The player selects from zero cards to a maximum of five cards to be replaced in a five card originally dealt hand. The word xe2x80x9choldxe2x80x9d is written on the video screen adjacent to (usually above) each selected card. The player discards the cards not indicated as on xe2x80x9choldxe2x80x9d by pressing a draw or draw/deal button. New randomly selected cards from the residue of the fifty-two card deck are used to replace the discarded cards. After the player discards, certain final hands result in awards of money or credits. Posted pay tables determine the amount of player wins.
Manufacturers and casinos actively look for new and better versions of games such as video draw poker to maintain the interest of existing players and to introduce new players to exciting variations of the basic game. Some changes that have been tried include at least the following. Jokers and wild cards have been added to the card deck to enable higher hit frequencies for larger value hands to stimulate play. Some versions of video poker allow players to play double-or-nothing with all or a portion of awards after a winning hand. A xe2x80x9cSecond Chancexe2x80x9d game, from Bally Manufacturing, allows the player to make another bet after the original round of card play has concluded. The player obtains one additional (sixth) card with a second chance to win.
Live house banked poker games, also termed pit poker games have encountered a significant revitalization at casinos. Part of the revival is the introduction of varieties of stud and draw poker games and progressive jackpots. Progressive jackpots are represented in the general casino gaming literature in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,861,041; 5,377,973; 5,584,485; and 5,626,341 and specifically to games of Twenty-One in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,288,077; 5,364,105; and 5,577,731. The underlying theme in the progressive jackpot games is that separate bets are initially made in an underlying game and a side wager on the appearance in the wagering player""s hand of a predetermined arrangement of cards. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,794,964 and 5,795,225 describes a method and apparatus for including a jackpot component as an additional feature in a live casino game.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,033,744 describes a new poker game, specifically a poker game with a draw or card replacement step, in a video game where a specific card is xe2x80x9czappedxe2x80x9d or eliminated and a replacement provided, even if it is the intent of the player to zap or replace more than a single card. Rather than committing all cards to replacement, a decision may be made on each card in the sequence of zap and replace. This may provide the player with an option of changing strategies as each replacement card is dealt.
To increase the excitement and entertainment of the player and to offer games to the player, side bet games have been developed, both for live gaming and for video gaming. In some situations, awards for the side bet games may be independent of the rank of the dealt hand in the primary game. A common feature in some poker games is the addition of a progressive jackpot, as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,861,041; 5,377,973; 5,584,485; and 5,626,341 and specifically to games of Twenty-One in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,288,077; 5,364,105; and 5,577,731. These patents generally show that a progressive, and possibly much higher value jackpot, may be won by a player by making a separate and independent wager at the beginning of the primary game (before cards are dealt). This separate wager is won if predetermined arrangements of cards, such as certain poker hands of rated value (usually at least three-of-a-kind, straight, flush, full house, four-of-a-kind, straight flush and royal flush), are achieved in the play of the hand. The highest progressive jackpot value is usually won when the player obtains a royal flush, either with the cards in a specific order (e.g., A K Q J 10, also referred to as a xe2x80x9cpositional winxe2x80x9d) or in a random order (e.g., with the cards A K Q J 10 appearing in any arrangement or order). With the separate bet being placed, the jackpot or special award for the player achieving a rated (higher value) hand is paid in addition to awards won in the play of the primary game. This separate wager, however, is still won only when the player exhibits a hand with a relatively high poker value. A predetermined arrangement of cards which is independent of play in the underlying game could be, for example, a rank of a poker hand achieved in the play of a hand of Twenty-One, four aces in a Twenty-One game, or a Twenty-One point count total achieved in a poker hand. An example of a predetermined arrangement of cards which is dependent upon play of the underlying game could be, for example, specific ranks of poker hands (e.g., four-of-a-kind or straight flush) achieved during play of an underlying poker game.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,393 describes a method of playing a card-based wagering game. An underlying card game with wagering is played, and a side bet game is also played. The side bet game is played by the player making an independent wager (a card wager as opposed to a game wager) on a range of possible cards, a particular card of any suit, any card of a particular suit, a particular card of a particular suit or any combination of the above. In the preferred embodiment, the wager is made on the appearance of a card within three separate ranges of value (e.g., cards of six and lower, cards of value 7, 8 and 9, and cards of value ten or higher. The card wager appears to be required prior to the beginning of any of the games.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,529,309 describes a card game, similar to baccarat, in which a side bet is also allowed. The side bet is based upon a wager that the dealer""s hand and the player""s hand will have the same, non-zero value at the end of play. The wager is described as being made before play of the hands has begun, that is, prior to the deal.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,607,162 describes a method of playing a matching card game. Hands are dealt by randomly generated distributions of cards to players and to a dealer. More than one deck must be used in play, with an individual deck for the dealer or with multiple decks, the reasons becoming apparent with the play of the game. The dealer turns up his cards in sequence, and the players turn cards face down when the cards match. The player wins a wager if all of the player""s cards are turned face down, and the house wins the wager if any of the cards remain face up. Poker hands above a specific value (e.g., above three-of-a-kind) are also awarded. The wager is made prior to the deal or exposure of cards in the hands. A single ante bet is placed at the beginning of the game.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,452,899 describes a method of playing a wagering game in which players select sets of winning numbers. Players place wagers, the dealer provides two cards face-up to the players, and then compares the value of the two cards with the selected sets of winning numbers, the dealer awarding a prize to the player whose winning numbers include the numeric sum of the face-up cards. If the two face-up cards are equal to two predetermined key cards, the dealer and players may implement a bonus playing procedure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,531,440 describes a xe2x80x9cDouble Pokerxe2x80x9d game in which a player is initially dealt two distinct poker hands after an initial wager. The play of the hand may include the player selecting only one of the poker hands to be played. The game may also include an additional game in which, where there is a first and second hand, the player is awarded a predetermined amount if one or more cards from the first hand (e.g., a five card stud hand) match one or more cards from the second hand (either in number, number and suit, and/or position). The matching of cards may also be associated with a progressive payout or progressive jackpot, particularly in a video gaming machine. The play of the game is based upon the initial wager in the primary game, and the wager must be made before both of the hands are dealt.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,813,675 describes a casino table system that is convertible from a casino table game (such as blackjack or poker) into a video playable system. A removable top formatted as a live play blackjack or poker game is removable, revealing monitors in each of the player positions that may be used to play various video format casino games. The two games, the live action game and the video game, are not described as interactive.
These games provide a useful variety of games to be played in various casino or private formats, but there is always a desire for different games with unique playing features to be available. Additionally, it is desirable for methods and apparatus to be provided that facilitate the playing of the games. Particularly with the advent of video screens (e.g., cathode ray tubes (CRT) screens, light emitting diode (LED) screens, liquid crystal (LC) screens or other image providing systems) and computer processing units (CPU), games have been enabled for much greater flexibility and efficiency. Gaming apparatus are provided for many different types of games that were originally played only in a live version, and many unique features have been added to the play of those games, particularly with respect to the graphics and animation that can now be provided. For example, poker games, either stud or draw, with or without wild cards, can be played on video gaming apparatus. Blackjack is played in a single video format, and the graphics that are now provided can include such detail as the hands of the dealer distributing cards, movement of chips during bets, stacking of chips that have been won, and other features that are both entertaining and simulating of a live table game. Other blackjack video systems replicate a live table, with no live dealer being present, but all cards and other features being effected by a computer and video screens. The video screens are provided in each of the player positions and separately in the dealer position, just as if cards were being physically dealt to those positions.
A method of playing a game, including a game of poker, the method comprising:
a) dealing a number of playing cards from a first deck of cards to a player to form an original hand. The player has made or subsequently makes a wager on a game such as a poker game being played with that original hand or places a wager at any time before or after seeing one or more cards of the hand;
b) from a separate deck of playing cards, dealing one card that is a display card;
c) showing the value of the display card, the display card establishing a fact that cards of equal rank or value to the display card are Wild Cards for the purpose of establishing a rank or value (e.g., total point count) for the player""s hand; and
d) paying the player for attaining a hand of at least a predetermined rank with or without the presence of Wild Cards or for displaying a hand that wins against a dealer""s hand in the play of an underlying game;
wherein the separate deck of cards comprises at least one virtual separate deck and the card is displayed on an image screen (e.g., preferably in a space between a dealer and at least one player).
The game is therefore preferably played as a combination live table game with a video display and software/computer game component. This provides a unique level of comfort to players of the game in that the physical cards and the virtual cards are not related, neither the dealer nor the computer deals both sets of cards, and the game provides a perception of less control by the house (e.g. whether a live dealer or computer).
Where the game is a draw poker game, steps such as allowing the player to discard cards from the original hand, and dealing player replacement cards to bring the player""s hand up to the number of cards used to play the game of poker may be used.